HUDSON COUNTY -- Taking matters a step farther than requested by no-smoking advocates, the Hudson County Freeholders are poised to introduce an ordinance that would ban cigarette smoking in county parks and would impose fines on people smoking near areas where children play.

Members of the Hudson County Integrated Municipal Advisory Council appeared at the freeholder caucus on Jan. 22 requesting that the county move to make county parks smoke free zones, but did not go as far as to ask that fines be imposed. The state Department of Health offers free signs and encourages governments to take measures to discourage smoking in public parks, and anti-smoking advocates claim the signs tend to discourage smoking in those areas even when not enforced.

But Freeholder Bill O’Dea said that the county should take additional steps to assure that children in sports areas and playgrounds are protected from the dangers of second hand smoke, and proposed passing an ordinance that would allow Hudson County sheriff’s officers to issue tickets to those caught smoking within a certain distance to these sections of county parks.